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Artist Biography

María José Miranda

María José has played an important role in spreading and promoting Mexican culture and traditions in Toronto since 1994. Her frequent travels to Mexico keep her connected with its traditions, its history and its people. At the age of 13, she became a member of “Alianza Mexicano Canadiense” one of the first Mexican dance groups established in Toronto, where she later taught to both adults and children.

In 2005, she joined Ballet Folklorico Puro Mexico (BFPM) as a dancer and in 2007, she had the opportunity to take on the responsibility of directing the organization and continuing with the project. Under her direction, BFPM became the first Mexican dance group to be awarded first place in the International folk-dance competition in 2010 at the CHIN Picnic and participated in large scale key events within Ontario such as the Ontario Celebration zone hosted for the Pan-American games in 2015 and the Canada 150 official celebrations hosted at Queens Park in Toronto.

While directing BFPM, she had the opportunity to fully design and execute the traditional “ofrenda” at the Harbourfront Centre’s Day of the Dead celebrations since 2013, creating altars for members of the community and important figures of Mexico’s past, such as: Amalia Hernandez, Diego Rivera, José Clemente Orozco, Alfaro Siqueiros, Adela Velarde Perez (Adelita) and Frida Kahlo, independently in 2018.

A graduate of George Brown’s Graphic Design program, Miranda has a new-found passion for Day of the Dead. She has had the select privilege of designing and executing Day of the Dead makeup for a number of performers from 2013 through 2018 and has initiated a new and independent project “Catrinas Makeup & Design” in 2018, where she continues to explore the art form.

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Catrinas Makeup & Design is fully dedicated to the creation of Day of the Dead makeup and creating a unique experience for each client.